Method and apparatus for data acquisition, data management, and report generation for tractor trailer subsystem testing and maintenance

ABSTRACT

Techniques for operating, testing, and generating a testing report for the electrical and air subsystems of a vehicular trailer, without the use of an associated truck tractor are disclosed. The system includes a portable testing unit with self-powered electrical and air subsystems which are interconnected to the corresponding subsystems of the vehicular trailer under test. The portable testing unit can be rolled about on a stand and functions as a mini-truck tractor, in the sense that it selectively provides electrical power and air to the VUT. The testing unit is controlled by a small, portable hand held radio frequency remote control that communicates test and data signals to a radio receiver in the portable testing unit. The system acquires testing data from both automatic and manual means from disparate sources. The system stores the testing data and automatically generates testing reports. The system manages the testing data and generated reports.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

This is a continuation application which claims priority to commonlyassigned, co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/015,798, filedAug. 30, 2013, which claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/666,793, filed Nov. 1, 2012 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,571,751 onOct. 29, 2013, which applications and patents are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

A standard truck for long-haul transportation of freight generallyincludes a truck tractor and at least one vehicular trailer. A typicalvehicular trailer includes separate electrical and air subsystems tocontrol signals and breaking. Truck operators and vehicle regulatorsmust routinely test and assess the operability of the electrical and airsubsystems of these vehicular trailers. Routine testing of a vehiculartrailer ensures that one can safely operate the trailer in compliancewith regulation standards. Self-powered testing units, such as thosedescribed in TESTER FOR ELECTRIC AND PNEUMATIC SYSTEMS OF VEHICULARTRAILERS (U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,370), which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety, can be directly connected to the electricaland air subsystems of a trailer to provide power and test the air andelectrical subsystems without the use of an associated truck tractor. Amechanical or other tester using a testing unit will generate reportsthat contain test data resulting from the current test, along withhistorical and other data, such as fleet data. Typically, the mechanicmust acquire this data from multiple sources and manually compile andprepare a final report. This manual process of compiling and analyzingtest data can be time consuming and introduce human errors into thetesting and reporting procedure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a system diagram of an environment in which embodiments of theinvention may be implemented.

FIG. 2 is an embodiment of a portable testing unit that may be includedin the system such as that shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an embodiment of a handheld control unit that may be includedin the system such as that shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 illustrates a logical flow diagram generally showing oneembodiment of an overview process for testing and data acquisition of atractor trailer and the analysis and generation of a final testingreport.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary final testing report.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A method and system for operating, testing, and generating a testingreport for the electrical and air subsystems of a vehicle is disclosed(hereinafter the “testing and reporting system” or “the system”). Thesystem allows for the operation and testing of vehicles including, butnot limited to, tractors, trucks, buses, trailers, and other towedvehicles. The system provides electrical, pneumatic, and other powersources required for such operation and testing. In some embodiments,the system allows for the operation and testing of trailers and othertowed vehicles without the use of an associated truck tractor. Forillustrative purposes the specification details the operation andtesting of tractor trailers. However, it will be appreciated that thesegeneral methods apply to the operation and testing of buses, power unittractors, straight trucks, and other vehicles.

The system includes a portable testing unit with self-powered electricaland air subsystems which are interconnected to the correspondingsubsystems of the vehicular trailer under test (hereinafter “VUT”). Theportable testing unit can be rolled about on a stand and functions as amini-truck tractor by selectively providing electrical power and air tothe VUT. In some embodiments, the testing unit is controlled by a small,portable hand held radio frequency (RF) remote control that communicatestest and data signals to a radio receiver in the portable testing unit.

In addition to providing electrical power and air to the VUT, thetesting unit includes electronic diagnostic components that can measureand interpret the operational status of the electrical and airsubsystems of the VUT. Furthermore, during the testing period, theportable testing unit monitors and electronically logs diagnostic datapertaining to its own operation and the operation of the VUT'selectrical and air subsystems. In particular, the portable testing unitcan acquire and analyze diagnostic data, including electronic dataassociated with the electrical and air subsystems of the trailer. Moderntrailers often have well over a hundred sensors to monitor temperatures,pressures, voltages, currents, and the like. During a testing period,the testing unit can acquire readings, in the form of electronic datasignals, from many of these sensors. Additionally, the testing unit mayalso be equipped with software to interpret the sensor data and performpreliminary diagnostics based on the sensor data. Other trailer-specificdata can be acquired through the RF remote control or manually enteredby a user. Furthermore, the testing unit can acquire and save datareceived from these disparate sources in a digitized format. The testingunit may communicate the digitized data to an analysis and reportingserver device through a network. The analysis and reporting serverdevice has access to other data for reporting, such as historical datapertaining to the particular VUT and larger datasets for an entire fleetof vehicular trailers, including the fleet that includes the VUT. Theanalysis and reporting server may access all the data needed to preparea final report. The analysis and reporting server may compile all therelevant data, perform an analysis, and automatically generate a finaltesting report including a Department of Transportation report(hereinafter “DOT Report”). Additionally, the analysis and reportingserver can automatically generate and send work orders, authorizations,part and maintenance invoices, and the like, as well as generate andsave a vehicle history file.

FIG. 1 is a network diagram of a representative environment 100 in whichthe testing and reporting systems operates. However, not all of thesecomponents may be required to practice the invention. Variation in thearrangement and type of components may be made without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the environment 100 includes a portabletesting unit (hereinafter “PTU”) 102, which is connected to the vehicleunder test 108. The PTU 102 provides electrical power and air to theVUT's 108 subsystems, including at least an electrical subsystem 110 anda pneumatic subsystem 112. In addition to providing power to subsystems110 and 112, the PTU 102 can control and monitor some or allfunctionalities of the subsystems.

The electrical subsystem's 110 functionalities include the VUT'selectrical lights. In particular, the trailer includes at least onebrake light 120. In many embodiments, the electrical subsystem 110includes functionalities such as Anti-Lock Brakes (hereinafter “ABS”),temperature control, and pressure systems. For many of the electricalfunctionalities of VUTs, a microcontroller and/or sensors are includedin the VUT to control and monitor performance. The PTU 102 is enabled tooperate and monitor some or all such microcontrollers, sensors, and anyother component associated with the electronics of the VUT.

The pneumatic subsystem's 112 functionalities include delivering air toand operating the VUT's pneumatic brakes 122. As with the electricalsystem 110, the PTU 102 can operate and monitor all componentsassociated with the VUT's pneumatics.

A physical connection between the PTU 102 and VUT 108 is enabled throughthe connecting assembly 106. The connecting assembly 106 includes a setof physical connectors and electrical, optical, and pneumatic pathways,such as wires, optical fibers, and hoses that allow the PTU 102 todeliver electrical and pneumatic power to the VUT subsystems 110 and112. The connecting assembly 106 additionally includes physicalconnectors and electrical and optical pathways to allow the transmissionof digital or analog electrical signals between the PTU 102 and VUT 108.The digital or analog signals may encode information relating to testinginstructions or data pertaining to a test of the VUT 108. These signaland data pathways enable the PTU 102 to acquire test data and to controland operate the VUT subsystems 110 and 112.

The environment 100 additionally includes an RF handheld control unit(hereinafter the “HCU”) 104 that is used to remotely control theoperation of the PTU 102. The HCU includes controls to enable a user toinitiate, run, and control a testing cycle on the VUT 108. In someembodiments, a user may manually input test data into the HCU 104.Alternatively, the HCU 104 may be used to automatically acquire testdata using an optical scanner or camera. In some embodiments, some ofthe functionality of the HCU 104 may be redundantly implemented on thePTU 102, so that a user can initiate and control a test using either theHCU 104 or controls included on the PTU 102.

The HCU 104 typically communicates and sends control signals to the PTU102 using RF electromagnetic waves or other wireless communications. Inother embodiments, the HCU 104 may be tethered to the PTU throughphysical communication lines. In some embodiments, the HCU 104 may beimplemented on a mobile computing device, such as a smart phone or atablet.

The environment 100 additionally includes an Analysis and ReportingServer (hereinafter, the “server”) 114. The server 114 communicates withthe PTU 102 through a network 118. The network 118 may include one ormore wireless networks, a wired network, a local area network (LAN), awide area network (WAN), a direct connection such as a Universal SerialBus (USB) port, and the like, and may include a public network, such asthe Internet. In some embodiments, the HCU 104 may be communicate withthe server and the PTU through the network 118.

The server 114 analyzes test data acquired by the PTU 102 during thetesting of the VUT 108. In addition to the data acquired from the PTU102 during testing, the test data may also include data supplied by theuser or acquired through other means. The user supplied data may beentered automatically or manually with the HCU 104 or PTU 102. The testdata may include additional data stored on the server 114, or datastored in a database which the server can access through the network118.

The additional data may include historical test data or maintenancerecords associated with the particular VUT 108 or othertractor-trailers. The additional data may also include data associatedwith the fleet that the VUT 108 is a member of. The server 114incorporates all of the relevant data and generates an analysis of thedata using predefined analysis algorithms.

Upon performing the analysis, the server 114 may automatically generatea Final Report (hereinafter the “report”), which summarizes the testresults for the VUT 108 in a format useful for the user. The contentsand format of the report may be configured by the user. The report maybe stored in a digital file, which may be stored on the server or sentto the printer 116 to generate a hardcopy. Additionally, the report maybe supplied to the user through the HCU 104 or PTU 102. The report mayalso be made available to other devices, users, or system through thenetwork 118.

FIG. 2 is a high-level block diagram showing representative architectureof the PTU 102. The PTU 102 includes one or more processors 202 andmemory 204 coupled to an interconnect 206. The interconnect 206 shown inFIG. 2 is an abstraction that represents anyone or more separatephysical buses, one or more point-to-point connections, or both busesand point-to-point connections connected by appropriate bridges,adapters, or controllers. The interconnect 206, therefore, may comprise,for example, a system bus, a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI)family bus, a HyperTransport or industry standard architecture (ISA)bus, a small computer system interface (SCSI) bus, a universal serialbus (USB), a IIC (12C) bus, or an Institute of Electrical andElectronics Engineers (IEEE) standard 1394 bus, sometimes referred to as“Firewire.”

The processor(s) 202 may include central processing units (CPUs) of thePTU 102 and, thus, control the overall operation of the PTU 102,including the testing of the VUT 108. In certain examples, theprocessor(s) 202 accomplish this by executing software or firmwarestored in the memory 204. Thus, the testing algorithms used to test theVUT 108 may be stored in the memory 204. The processor(s) 202 may be, ormay include, one or more programmable general purpose or special purposemicroprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), programmablecontrollers, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs),programmable logic devices (PLDs), or the like, or a combination of suchdevices.

The memory 204 is, or includes, the main memory of the PTU 102. Thememory 204 represents any form of fixed or removable random accessmemory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, or the like, or acombination of such devices. In use, the memory 204 stores, among otherthings, an operating system 208 of the PTU 102.

The PTU 102 also includes an input device 212, which enables a user tooperate and control the PTU 102. The input device 212 may be a keyboard,trackpad, touch sensitive screen, or other standard computer inputdevice. The PTU 102 also has a display device 214 suitable fordisplaying a user interface. The display may be a liquid-crystal display(LCD), a plasma display, a vacuum fluorescent display, a light emittingdiode (LED) display, a field emission display, and/or other suitabletype of display configured to present a user interface. The displaydevice 214 may additionally incorporate analog gauges such as pressure,current, and voltage gauges. The PTU 102 further includes a radiofrequency (RF) transceiver 216 that enables the PTU 102 to communicatewith remote devices over a network and may be, for example, a wirelessadapter. The PTU 102 may further include local storage 210 coupled tothe interconnect 206. The local storage 210 may be, for example, a flashmemory device that is configured to provide mass storage and that storesdata 217 used by the mobile device. The data 217 may include any datathat is acquired during the testing sequence and stored in local storage210. In some embodiments, the testing algorithm instruction sets may bestored in local storage 210.

The PTU 102 also includes electrical input/output connectors 220 and anelectrical power supply 218. The electrical power supply 218 isconnected to the connecting assembly 106 (FIG. 1) through the electricalinput/outputs connectors 220. The electrical power supply 218 supplieselectrical current and voltage to the VUT 108 through the connectingassembly 106. Additionally, the electrical output connectors 220 delivertesting signals to the VUT 108 through the connecting assembly 106. Theelectrical input connectors 220 also receive testing data from the VUT108 through the connecting assembly 108.

The PTU 102 also includes electrical meters 222, which may includeinstruments or sensors for measuring or detecting current, voltage,frequency, resistance, capacitance, conductance, decibels, duty cycle,inductance, temperature, forward drop across diode junctions, and thelike. The electrical meters 222 receive electrical testing signalsgenerated by the VUT 108 through the electrical inputs 220. Theelectrical meters 222 can generate computer-readable signals that encodethe results of such measurements and incorporate the computer-readablesignals into the test data.

The PTU 102 also includes pneumatic input/output connectors 226 and apneumatic power supply 224. The pneumatic power supply 224 is connectedto the connecting assembly 106 through the pneumatic input/outputconnectors 226. The pneumatic power supply 224 supplies air and pressureto the VUT 108 through the connecting assembly 106. Additionally, thepneumatic output connectors 226 deliver testing signals to the VUT 108through the connecting assembly 106. The pneumatic input/outputconnectors 226 receive testing data from the VUT 108 through theconnecting assembly 106.

The PTU 102 further includes pneumatic meters 228. The pneumatic meters228 may include instruments or sensors for measuring or detectingpressure, air flow, displacement, temperature, volume, and the like. Thepneumatic meters 228 receive pneumatic testing signals generated by theVUT 108 through the electrical inputs 220. The electrical meters 228generate computer readable signals that encode the results of suchmeasurements and incorporate the computer-readable signals into the testdata. The PTU 102 additionally includes mounted wheels 230 so that theit may move easily between tractor trailers.

FIG. 3 is a high-level block diagram showing a representativeimplementation of the HCU 104. Not all of the functional blocks shown inFIG. 3 may be required to practice the invention. Variation in thearrangement and type of functional blocks may be made without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention. The HCU 104 can be held by auser and may resemble, both in size and shape, typical hand held units,such as universal remote controls or mobile computing devices such assmartphones or tablets. The HCU 104 is used to remotely control andoperate the PTU 102, as well as to provide data and initiate testingsequences.

The HCU 104 includes a number of components similar to componentsincluded on the PTU 104. The HCU 104 includes one or more processors 302and memory 304 coupled to an interconnect 306. The processor(s) 302 maybe central processing units (CPUs) of the HCU 104 and, thus, control theoverall operation of the HCU 104. In certain examples, the processor(s)302 accomplish this by executing software or firmware stored in thememory 304.

The HCU 104 also includes a manual input device 312. The manual inputdevice 312 enables the user to initiate and control tests of the VUT108. The manual input device 312 may be a keyboard, trackpad, touchsensitive screen, or other standard computer input device. Some testingalgorithms may prompt the user for further input or control sequencesduring a test, which the user may provide through the manual inputdevice 312. Other test algorithms may be automated, such that after auser initiates the test with the manual input device 312, the PTU 102 isable to complete and acquire all the data associated with the automatedtesting algorithm, without further interaction from the user.

A user may also use the manual input device 312 to enter data pertainingto the VUT 108. Such data may include a Vehicle Identification Number(hereinafter “VIN”), registration number, or other identifier thatuniquely identifies the VUT 108. Additionally, the user may use themanual input device 312 to enter test data during or after thecompletion of a testing sequence. For instance, some testing algorithmsmay require the user to monitor lights on the trailer to determine ifthey are operative during a testing sequence. During such a test, theuser may use the manual input device 312 to indicate whether the VUT's108 were operative. The data manually entered by the user iscommunicated to the PTU 102 and integrated with the other test dataacquired during the test.

The HCU 104 also has a display device 314 suitable for displayinginformation and data to the user. In some embodiments, the displaydevice 314 and the manual input device 312 may be integrated into asingle display screen by employing touch sensitive display technologies.The display device 314 can provide the user with real-time informationregarding the progress of an ongoing test, such as pass/fail indicatorsfor particular subsystems or VUT sensors. Additionally, the displaydevice 314 may display test data acquired by the PTU 102, analyzed datafrom the server 114, or the Final Report generated by the server.

The HCU 104 further includes an RF transceiver 316 that provides the HCU104 with the ability to communicate with the PTU 102. In someembodiments, the HCU 104 may also communicate with the PTU 102 and othergeneral computing devices, such as the server 114 using the network 118.

The HCU 104 may also include local storage 310 coupled to theinterconnect 306. The local storage 310 may be, for example, a flashmemory device that is configured to provide mass storage and that storesdata 318 used by HCU 104 of PTU 102. Data entered or acquired with HCU104 may be stored in local storage 310.

Additionally, the HCU 104 includes data entry sensors 320. Generally,the data entry sensors 320 acquire and enter data automatically. Thedata entry sensors 320 may include optical scanners or arrays ofcharge-coupled devices (hereinafter “CCDs”). With the incorporation ofsuch sensors in the HCU 104, the user may use the HCU 104 to scaninformation contained in barcodes, OR codes, or other scannabletechnologies. The data entry sensors 320 may also include a temperaturesensor, a global positioning system (hereinafter “GPS”) receiver toprovide location and timestamp data from the tests, and/or a microphoneto enable the HCU 104 to collect audio data.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a process 400 for testing and maintaining thesubsystems of a tractor-trailer with data acquisition, data management,and report generation at least partially automated. Processing begins atblock 402, where a user physically connects the PTU 104 to the tractortrailer to be tested (VUT 108). As discussed herein, the connectorassembly 106 provides the connection between the PTU 102 and the VUT108. In particular, the PTU 102 can supply electrical and pneumaticpower to the VUT via the connector assembly 106 without requiring anassociated tractor.

Processing then proceeds to block 404, where the system receivespre-test data, such as the VUT's VIN, registration number, or otheridentifier. Some pretest data may be specific to the history of the VUT108, such as historical test data, maintenance records, fleet recordsand the like. Other pre-test data may relate to the current condition ofthe VUT 108, such as part identifying numbers of parts currentlyinstalled on the VUT 108 or replacements parts to be installed in thefuture. Still other pre-test data may pertain to test conditions, suchas the algorithm that will be used to perform the test. Additionalpre-test data may identify the user or tester, such as the user's name,employee number, or social security number. Other pre-test data mayinclude date, timestamps, and/or coordinates of the testing location. Itis to be understood that practically any data that is potentiallyrelevant to the test analysis and/or reporting may be provided aspre-test data.

The pre-test data may be manually entered by the user through the PTU102 or HCU 104. Alternatively, in some embodiments, the data may beentered by optically scanning a barcode or QR code or taking a photo ofa license plate or other identifying component with the HCU 104. Some ofthe pre-test data may be manually or automatically downloaded from theserver 114 or external databases.

Processing then proceeds to block 406, where the system tests the VUT's108 electrical subsystems 110 and pneumatic subsystem 112. As discussedabove, the user may initiate the test with either the PTU 102 or the HCU104. The testing algorithm may be varied by the user. During a test, thePTU 102 controls and operates the VUT subsystems, in a manner conformingto the user-supplied test algorithms. In some embodiments, the testingalgorithms may be provided by vendors supplying the VUT subsystems. ThePTU 102 operates at least one of the VUT subsystems 110 and 112 andselectively delivers electrical or pneumatic power to the subsystemthrough at least one of the connectors in the connector assembly 106.During a test sequence, lights on the VUT 108 may be turned on and offin a predetermined sequence. Other testing operations may includeactuating hydraulic brakes, initiating and monitoring any sensors foundon the VUT, or operating other electronic or hydraulic components foundon the VUT 108.

At block 408, data from the testing sequence is acquired. As discussedabove, some of the data may be acquired automatically by the PTU 102,such as sensor readings or voltage/current readings. In someembodiments, the data is acquired in the form of electronic signalstransmitted to the PTU 102 through the connectors in the connectingassembly 106. Other data may be entered by the user using the PTU 102 orHCU 104. Such user-entered test data may indicate whether each lightturned on as prescribed by the testing algorithm, whether a brakingmechanism engaged, and the displacement distance of the brakingmechanisms. Any data describing the ongoing test, the VUT 108, or thefleet containing the VUT 108 may also be received at this block. Some ofthe data may be acquired with optical or photo-sensors. As discussedabove, some optical or photo-sensors may be located on the HCU 104. Insome embodiments, some of the data may be acquired from other devicesusing the network 118. Some of the acquired data may be provided inresponse to the operation of the subsystems 110 and 112. Some of thequantities represented in the acquired data may include current,voltage, pressure and the like. In some embodiments, the acquired datamay be saved in an electronic file.

Processing then proceeds block 410, where all of the relevant testingdata received during blocks 404, 406, and 408 is sent to the server 114via the network 118. In addition, the server 114 may receive dataentered manually by a user directly into at server 114 or over thenetwork 118 from other devices or databases. In some embodiments, theserver may receive at least some of the data in the form of anelectronic file. In some embodiments, the server 114 may store thereceived electronic file or create a new electronic file to store thedata.

Processing next proceeds to block 412, where received data is compiledand analyzed by the server 114. The analysis algorithm may be defined bya user or provided by another source. The analysis is based at least onthe raw data generated from the testing process. In some embodiments,the server generates a processed data set that includes the raw testingdata and the results of the analysis. In some embodiments, the analysisalgorithm will characterize the subsystems as passing or failing basedon the processed data set. The server 114 may automatically generateadditional reports based on either the analysis or the test report andsend the reports to other parties. Such additional reports may specifywork orders and replacements parts for parts on the VUT 108 that havebeen found to need replacement based on the testing analysis.

Processing next proceeds to block 414, where the server 114 generates afinal test report. The final test report is based on the processed dataset and the characterizations of the subsystems. In some embodiments,the final report is saved in an electronic file. The server may alsosend the electronic report to the printer 116 to be printed. Inaddition, the server 114 indexes, manages, and stores the electronicreport. Thus the final report may become input data for subsequenttesting and analysis of the VUT 108 or other tractor trailers in thefleet. In some embodiments, the server 114 also indexes, manages, andstores the acquired pre-testing data, raw testing data, post-testingdata, and processed data. All this data may be accessed and used forfuture testing cycles.

FIG. 5 is a non-limiting example of a redacted final analysis report.The report shown is meant to be illustrative of both possible contentand formatting. However, an actual final report generated by the systemmay vary significantly in both content and formatting. As shown in FIG.5, a typical final report may contain information identifying the VIN ofthe vehicle that has been tested, as well as the test site, testoperator, and other such identifying information. The analyzed test dataand test results may also be contained in the final test report.

In the final report, the results may be organized into sections, such aselectrical, air, differential pressure, and the like. Under eachsection, the results may be displayed for the various subsystemspertaining to the section. For instance, the electrical section maycontain results for the electronics pertaining to brakes, auxiliarysystems, and the various lights on the vehicle under test. Each entry inthe electrical section may contain the values for various measurements,such as current and voltage. Additional information such as condition,test mode, and status (Pass or Fail) of the result may also be included.Similar information for the air and differential pressure sections mayalso be included.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments ofthe invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration,but that various modifications may be made without deviating from theinvention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited to the specificembodiments described herein.

I claim:
 1. A method for data acquisition, data management, and reportgeneration for testing systems of a vehicle, the method comprising:coupling a portable testing unit to a plurality of subsystems of thevehicle via a connector, wherein the portable testing unit includes anelectrical power supply and a pneumatic power supply; operating aselected subsystem of the plurality of subsystems by selectivelydelivering electrical and pneumatic power from at least one of theelectrical power supply or the pneumatic power supply to the selectedsubsystem through the connector, wherein the selected subsystem includesat least one of an electrical light component or a pneumatic brakemechanism; capturing raw test data in an electronic file, wherein theraw test data is generated in response to the operation of the selectedsubsystem and encodes information relating to the operationalperformance of the selected subsystem and wherein the raw test dataincludes at least one of voltage, amperage, or air pressure; analyzing adata stream with a processor device, wherein the data stream includesthe raw test data; and generating a test report with the processordevice based on at least the data stream.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein the portable testing unit includes a first radio-frequency (RF)transceiver and is operated by a hand-held operating device whichincludes a second RF transceiver, wherein the portable testing unit andthe hand-held operating device are configured to communicate byemploying the respective RF transceivers.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein the data stream includes auxiliary information acquired at leastin part via a user manually providing information to the portabletesting unit or a hand-held operating device.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the raw test data is determined based on a plurality of datasignals received at the portable testing unit through the connector. 5.The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting the data streamto an analysis server, wherein the analysis server analyzes the datastream and generates the test report.
 6. The method of claim 1, whereinthe data stream further includes historical test data of the vehicle ora plurality of vehicles of which the vehicle is a member and the testreport is based on at least a portion of the historical test data. 7.The method of claim 1, further comprising automatically generating areport specifying a work order or acquisition of a replacement partbased at least in part on the data stream.
 8. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium for storing computer-executableinstructions for configuring a computing system to acquire data andgenerate reports for automatically testing systems of a vehicle, byperforming operations comprising: coupling a portable testing unit to aplurality of subsystems of the vehicle via a connector, wherein theportable testing unit includes an electrical power supply and apneumatic power supply; operating a selected subsystem of the pluralityof subsystems by selectively delivering electrical or pneumatic powerfrom at least one of the electrical power supply or the pneumatic powersupply to the selected subsystem through the connector, wherein theselected subsystem includes at least one of an electrical lightcomponent or a pneumatic brake mechanism; capturing raw test data in anelectronic file, wherein the raw test data is generated in response tothe operation of the selected subsystem and encodes information relatingto the operational performance of the selected subsystem and wherein theraw data test data includes at least one of voltage, amperage, or airpressure; analyzing a data stream with a processor device, wherein thedata stream includes the raw test data; and generating a test reportwith the processor device based on at least the data stream.
 9. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein theportable testing unit includes a first radio-frequency (RF) transceiverand is operated by a hand-held operating device which includes a secondRF transceiver, wherein the portable testing unit and the hand-heldoperating device are configured to communicate by employing therespective RF transceivers.
 10. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium of claim 8, wherein the data stream includes auxiliaryinformation acquired at least in part via a user manually providinginformation to the portable testing unit or a hand-held operatingdevice.
 11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim8, wherein the raw test data is determined based on a plurality of datasignals received at the portable testing unit through the connector. 12.The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8 furthercomprising: transmitting the data stream to an analysis server, whereinthe analysis server analyzes the data stream and generates the testreport.
 13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim8, wherein the data stream further includes historical test data of thevehicle or a plurality of vehicles of which the vehicle is a member ofand the test report is based on at least a portion of the historicaltest data.
 14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium ofclaim 8, further comprising automatically generating a report specifyinga work order or acquisition of a replacement part based at least in parton the data stream.
 15. A portable testing unit for testing systems of avehicle, the portable testing unit comprising: an electrical testingsubsystem; a pneumatic testing subsystem; a connector configured tocouple the electrical testing subsystem and the pneumatic testingsubsystem to a plurality of subsystems of the vehicle; wherein theportable testing unit is configured to: operate a selected subsystem ofthe plurality of subsystems by selectively delivering electrical orpneumatic power from at least one of an electrical power supply or apneumatic power supply to the selected subsystem through the connector,wherein the selected subsystem includes at least one of an electricallight component or a pneumatic brake mechanism; and capture raw testdata in an electronic file, wherein the raw test data is generated inresponse to the operation of the selected subsystem and encodesinformation relating to the operational performance of the selectedsubsystem and wherein the raw test data includes at least one ofvoltage, amperage, or air pressure; and a processor configured to:analyze a data stream, wherein the data stream comprises the raw testdata; and generate a test report based on at least the data stream. 16.The portable testing unit of claim 15, wherein the portable testing unitincludes a first radio-frequency (RF) transceiver and is operated by ahand-held operating device which includes a second RF transceiver,wherein the portable testing unit and the hand-held operating device areconfigured to communicate by employing the respective RF transceivers.17. The portable testing unit of claim 15, wherein the data streamincludes auxiliary information acquired at least in part via a usermanually providing information to the portable testing unit or ahand-held operating device.
 18. The portable testing unit of claim 15,wherein the raw data is determined based on a plurality of data signalsreceived at the portable testing unit through the connector.
 19. Theportable testing unit of claim 15, wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to transmit the data stream to an analysis server, whereinthe analysis server analyzes the data stream and generates the testreport.
 20. The portable testing unit of claim 15, wherein the processoris further configured to automatically generate a report specifying awork order or acquisition of a replacement part based on the datastream.